Skilled horsemen dwelling in the northern steppes of the Black and Caspian Sea regions, the Cossack hosts had a
tradition of fierce independence and, after decades of conflict, finally received privileges from the Russian
government in return for military services. In the 16th century there were six major Cossack hosts: the Don, the
Greben (in Caucasia), the Yaik (along the Ural River), the Volga, the Dnieper and the Zaporozhian (west of the
Dnieper). Under the Russian umbrella, the Cossacks expanded eastward from their settlements in the Don and were
early colonizers of Siberia. From the 18th through the 20th centuries, the Czars used Cossacks extensively to
suppress revolutionary activities and conduct foreign wars. During the Russian Civil War (1918-20), the Cossacks
in southern Russia formed the core of the White armies there and suffered extensively. Under Soviet rule, the
Cossack communities ceased to function as distinctive entities.